Ripples of Mercury
by RipplesOfAqua
Summary: A young girl sets out on a journey as she tries to deal with her tragic past. Little does she know, but fate swill sweep her into a legendary battle between ancient giants. and perhaps she can find happiness along the way. eventual StevenxOC. ON HIATUS!
1. Prologue: Storm Warning

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. if I did, new ones would look normal and Ash wouldn't leave behind his friends (*coughsMistycoughs). and Steven would be oh so much more important... xp

ok, so this is my first story on here. ever. so I'm new at all the uploading/formatting stuff. btw do any of you know how to double space lines & paragraphs, it keeps messing it up... anyway, constructive feedback is appreciated. a lot. you can tell me if you hate it too, but just do it nicely please.

also, if anyone would like to be a beta reader, it would make me really happy if you PM'ed me... :D

eventually this is going to become HoennChampionShipping. please be patient

* * *

Ripples of Mercury

Prologue – Storm Warning

An eerie silence hung heavily over the forest. The air was still. Wilted flowers drooped on their stems and the leaves hung limply on the trees, drowning in the humidity. Storm clouds loomed menacingly on the horizon. Shadows crept in as the dying sun fell beneath the hills. Flocks of taillow fled for the shelter of nearby trees, chirping warnings to the other Pokémon. A storm was brewing.

The forest waited expectantly. One by one, silver droplets fell from the darkening sky, gaining intensity, until the clouds burst open. Lightning split open the sky, illuminating a dark figure running amongst the shadows. It was a young girl, her russet-colored hair flying in the wind. A worn grey dress stuck to her soaked skin, causing her to stumble. Her thin frame and deep brown eyes made her appear older than her ten years. Every few seconds she would glance over her shoulder, as if something was following her.

Sure enough, a piercing howl echoed through the valley as louder cries joined the first. An enormous shape descended from the clouds, rapidly approaching its target. Its yellow eyes glowed threateningly in the darkness and it roared again, its razor-sharp fangs glinting in the lighting. As the salamence dove towards the earth, three more emerged from the sky. Without hesitation, the four monsters attacked the girl, throwing blue flames at her while they approached. They barely missed, but as she ran over a tree root she fell to the ground. Her eyes widened in terror as she saw another blaze headed straight towards her. She looked away, expecting to feel the excruciating heat of a dragon's breath, but it never came.

When she dared to look back, she saw two Pokémon standing over her. One was an ebony wolf, her tail rigid, as she formed a black orb in her mouth and then hurled it at her attackers. The other looked like a tall green lizard with ferns growing out of its tail. He ran up a nearby tree, then jumped ten feet in the air, as the green blades on his arms sliced one of the dragons. One of the salamence roared in pain, falling heavily onto the ground below. Another one sent burst of flame out of its huge jaws before it turned around and flew off into the distance. The fire missed the Pokémon, but set a gigantic oak ablaze.

Smoke poured from the tree as the fire spread, eating away at the forest. The sceptile roared in fury and sent a storm of swirling leaves at the remaining invader. Meanwhile, the mightyena looked at the girl and growled. When she did not move, the Pokémon gently bit her dress and dragged her towards the safety of the nearby river.

Then, the two Pokémon let loose a large, red beam of energy, finishing off another salamence. Unknown to the two, the last dragon had silently flown around them and was preparing to attack the girl from behind. The salamence opened its jaws, and once again she could see the flame flying towards her. Finally aware of what was going on, the sceptile and mightyena raced in front of her right as the fire met its target. The forest fire swallowed up the ground.

Eventually, the rainstorm put out the raging fire, but not before a three-mile area of the forest was destroyed. When the smoke cleared, the apparent damage was devastating. Blackened trees stood atop charred earth, all forms of life burned away. Slowly, the girl opened her eyes. In front of her, on the burnt ground, lay the shadow-colored wolf. She had died in the inferno. From behind her body came a pitiful whining noise.

The girl crawled over and found a baby poochyena pawing at its mother. Her heart broke and she reached out to stroke it. It looked sadly at her, then ran away into the blackened bushes. Pulling herself to her feet, the girl looked around for signs of the other Pokémon, but he had disappeared into the forest. She knew it was her fault that the forest held sacred to the sceptile was almost destroyed. It was her fault a Pokemon had died. A tear trickled down her cheek as she pulled darkened branches on top of the mightyena.

"I'm so sorry..."

* * *

I'll try an update asap, but that may not be too soon. I have a school essay due on Sunday that I kinda have to start (they can't even wait till school starts... :p) and some other summer work to do, but I'll try my best. again, reviews are MUCH appreciated! hope you enjoyed it. It will get better in the future, and the next chapter will be longer


	2. Seeds of Beginning

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. I wish I did though...

A/N: sorry it took me so long to update, I got grounded for not having my essay finished (which I finally did finish, yayy!) and then I got food poisoning off of rotten watermelon... xp

anyway, thank you sooooo much to SiriuslyFanatic and OhhChloeex for being my first 2 (and only:( ) reviewers! seriously, it means a lot

there's no Steven yet, but don't worry he'll be appearing in a few chapters

* * *

Ripples of Mercury

Chapter 1: Seeds of Beginning

_5 Years Later..._

A crisp spring breeze filled my lungs as I wandered through the forest. A recent storm had passed through, leaving the air clean and cool. Sunlight filtered softly through the leaves, bathing the forest in a beautiful green.

I sighed happily.

The gurgling of a nearby stream caught my attention. Curiously, I ventured further down the trail until I came to a small creek. The sun shone brilliantly through the gap in the trees, illuminating the ripples in the silvery water.

Without hesitation, I ran into its sparkling depths, drenching my clothes in the process. I didn't mind, the cool water felt wonderful. Water has always felt like a second home to me.

I lay back and let the liquid envelope me in its soft cocoon as it washed away all my worries.

For a time, I was content, until the bitter tang of smoke from a nearby campfire woke me from my reverie. Startled, I choked on water as the events from five years ago flew across my eyes.

_The forest is burning._

But no, the forest was fine, not a single ember threatening its peaceful existence.

I drew in a shaky breath and made my way out of the water, haunted by memories.

* * *

My clothes dries quickly in the sun as I followed the winding riverbank. Bird Pokémon chirped brightly from their nests and grass Pokémon scurried in the bushes. Marill floated lazily in the stream, and a zigzagoon jumped at a tree, trying to reach a high-up pecha berry. Chuckling to myself, I reached up and picked the berry for the poor thing. It thanked me happily then ran away. Nearby, I heard a tribe of wild nuzleaf run through the forest.

"Nuz! Nuzleaf! Nuz!"

Suddenly, a shout rang out.

"Aughhh! H-Help! Someone, help me p-please!"

Fearing the worst, I ran towards the commotion. Gangs of wild nuzleaf were known for harassing hikers.

Sure enough, a group of nuzleaf circled around a skinny man in a strange looking lab coat, who was obviously frightened. His eye twitched nervously as the nuzleaf grew ever closer and began to spit seeds in his face. It would have been hilarious if he hadn't been in danger...

_And of course I have no way to help..._

I took a step forward.

"Nuzz-leaf! Nuz!"

_Oh wonderful, they saw you. Just great._

The man cried out, "H-Hey! P-Please, can you h-help m-me? If you look in my b-bag, you'll find three p-pokeballs. You can use them. H-Hurry!"

The nuzleaf shot more seeds at the poor man, clearly unfazed by my presence. Meanwhile I rushed over to his abandoned shoulder bag and looked inside. On it the name Ralph was embroidered. So that's the guys name. Sure enough, inside were three white pokeballs. I grabbed one.

Out jumped a little green gecko Pokémon. He immediately sprinted up a nearby tree, climbed onto a branch thirty feet up, then did a somersault off, landing perfectly on the ground. Several of the nuzleaf turned around to watch, completely forgetting about Ralph.

_Wow... that thing's fast..._

"Treecko!"

"Hey treecko! Can you attack these nuzleaf? They're hurting that man over there!"

"..."

"P-Please?"

No use. The treecko looked at me, and I swear I saw a smirk on his face. He turned away and jumped back into the tree, completely ignoring me.

_Oh come on..._

"Treecko! Please come down! That man needs your help! Isn't he you trainer?"

"..."

Several of the nuzleaf had been watching our exchange with interest, and started laughing. Laughing! The damn little things...

The treecko's eyes snapped open, burning with anger.

"Treeeeee-KO!"

He leapt off the branch and dived on the nuzleaf. He viciously whipped two in the face, completely knocking them out. He screamed at the rest.

"Tree! Tree-ko! Treeeeee-ko!"

Then, he proceeded to pound each and every one of them in the face. Me and Ralph stood there, speechless...

"Tree-ko! KO!"

With that, the nuzleaf picked up their unconscious friends and ran away into the forest.

_...Talk about a temper tantrum. What the heck was that about? I guess that's one way to get rid of wild Pokémon... _

"E-excuse me? Miss? T-thank you for saving me from those savage Pokémon. My name's Ralph. I'm an assistant researcher for Professor Birch. Could you come with me for a bit?"

* * *

"Hello! I'm Professor Birch, the Pokémon professor for this region! That was a very brave thing you did, and I'm quite impressed with the way you handled that treecko! You know, I think you'd make a great trainer. Can I ask you a favor? I'll let you pick one of the three Pokémon in the bag over there, if you can fill this Pokedex up with information on different Pokémon."

_I guess it wouldn't hurt to be a trainer... It's not like I have anything better to do, or a better way to make a living..._

The Professor showed me the same three white Pokeballs as before. I noticed each had a different on the top to show what type of Pokémon was inside.

The first was emblazoned with a red flame, indicating a fire type Pokémon.

_Fire types are strong... but no, I can't handle one, not after what I did to the forest._

The second was decorated by a blue raindrop for a water type.

_Water types are cute, but I can't look one in the eyes, not after the accident..._

The last had the bright green leaf of a grass Pokémon on it. That was treecko.

_Oh no, don't do it. That Pokémon hates you, He'll make your life miserable._

"I'll take the treecko."

_You're an idiot..._

* * *

After walking a good two miles down Route 101, I decided it was time to bring out Emerald (as I had decided to call him) and see if he didn't totally hate me.

"Come on out Emerald!"

He hit me in the face with his tail...

* * *

_Emerald's pov_

I swear, today kept getting worse and worse. First, those obnoxious nuzleaf (who think they own the forest) started calling me a torchic, because I "was too afraid to come down out of the tree and fight them like a real grass Pokémon." Well hah, I showed them. Those losers ran away without even fighting back.

They've always been rivals to us treecko. Of course, we always win. Except when they steal our sitrus berries. That gets annoying...

Then, that stupid old man actually gave me to that little girl who knows nothing about Pokémon battles. And now I'm stuck with her, well, at least until I can escape or convince her to release me...

An to top it all off, she decides to name me after a rock. A rock! Well, at least it's a green one. But if she starts calling me Emmy she's going to regret it.

Actually, I think she's already starting to regret picking me. As she passed through Oldale Town, several trainers challenged her to a battle. I, or course, refused to come out of my Pokeball. Then, just to embarrass her, when she finally got me out I refused to listen to. She really is a bad trainer. I mean, honestly, who says "pond" instead of "pound?" I'm not even a water type, for goodness sakes.

This should be fun...

* * *

ok, for those who are wondering, Emerald is NOT named after the game. When I got sapphire I named my treecko Emerald, because the name fit, and that was before the emerald game came out.

hope you enjoyed the chapter! It's one of the more boring ones that I have planned, but it had to be done.

the more reviews I get, the more inspired I'll be, and the sooner I'll update :D

seriously, even if you just say "hi" I'll be happy...


	3. Rescues & Rival & AN IMPORTANT AN!

Disclaimer: unfortunately, I do not own Pokemon.

A/N: major thanks go to RunningWithWolves11, Butterfly Meadow, Ferra, OhhChloeex, and Ash Aijo for reviewing the last chapter! It means a lot to me! Sorry it took me so long to update...

**PLEASE READ**! V V V

YOu see, my mom found out that I'm "talking to strangers/potential murderers" on fanfiction and is banning me from logging on (I was stupid, printed it with the author's note, and left it in the printer)

I can still read stuff on here, and if I was reviewing your story, I'm still reading it and love it, I just can't review

In the meantime, I PROMISE THAT I WILL FINISH THIS STORY! and in a few years I will publish the rest, if any of you are still around then

but really, thanks to all of you who supported this, it means a lot

Chapter 2: Of Rescues and Rivals

After a long day of stumbling over tree roots and getting stung by wurmple, I was in a thoroughly rotten mood. When I first tried to talk with Emerald, he pounded me in the face with his tail and then returned himself to his pokeball. I didn't even know Pokémon could **do** that.

To top it all off, a group of ten-year-olds challenged me to a battle, but Emerald **refused** to come out of his pokeball. The smirks on the kids' haughty little faces told it all: I was a loser. Already five years older than them, and I couldn't even handle one little treecko...

_I knew I should have gone with the fire-type..._

When I was a few miles from Oldale Town, I stopped and sat down to eat one of the sandwiches Professor Birch had given me. I was thinking of calling quits and setting up camp there. It was 4:00 and the sun had already begun to set behind the tall trees of the forest.

I heard a rustling sound coming from the bushes, and a boy around my age sprinted past. Suddenly, he stopped, looked back at me, and came running over.

"Hey! You! You're a trainer! Wanna battle me? Prepare to lose, my name's Brendan, Professor Birch's kid! Me and my combusken are unbeatable!"

_**That **__hyper little boy is Birch's kid! Jeez, talk about too much energy, he's practically jumping as he talks._

"Hi! My name's Aqua, I just started out this morning. I'd battle you, but my treecko's being stubborn. He won't come out of his pokeball." I replied sheepishly.

"Oh cool, you have a treecko! You must have gotten him from my dad, right? Everyone gets their pokemon from him. Here, let me see his pokeball. I can get him out for you!"

"If you want, you can try... I still don't think he'll obey me in a battle though."

I handed over the pokeball. Brendan grabbed it, shook it up and down several times, then pressed the release button. A very angry treecko jumped out. I almost felt bad for Emerald. Almost. It was his fault I had to resort to this anyway...

"Tree-koo! Tree!"

He stuck his tongue out at us and blew a raspberry. He hit me on the head with his tail, **again, **and retreated to his pokeball.

_Oh come on, I didn't even do anything! It was that Brendan kid... well at least you're consistent..._

"I swear that treecko is obsessed with pounding me on the head. I didn't even do anything this time..."

Brendan chuckled. "Heh, yeah, I recognize that little guy from the lab. He's a firecracker all right. He's had a bad past, though. When he was still in his egg, his father, who was the leader of their tribe, was severely burned in a horrible forest fire. A major chunk of Petalburg Woods was destroyed. The tribe threw his family out, because his father failed to protect their sacred trees. That winter was especially hard, and his parents died in the cold. That's when my dad found this little guy, half frozen and starved. He'll be strong once you gain his trust."

_A forest fire... no it can't be. That sceptile couldn't have been his father, could it? I wonder if Emerald knows it was my fault... maybe that's why he hates me. I guess I can understand him though, I know what it's like to have a terrible past..._

"Hey! You! Quit spacing out! You coming to Oldale Town, or what? The Pokémon Center there has great food!"

I sighed and followed along. At least I'd be able to sleep in a bed that night.

I awoke to the unique feeling of having the air squeezed out of my lungs, which, let me tell you, is quite _pleasant. _I opened my eyes. Jumping up and down on my stomach was my little green treecko. It was actually kinda cute. Except it hurt. A lot.

"Alright, alright Emerald! I'm up! That hurts..."

"Treecko!" he said indignantly. He pointed to an empty candy wrapper on the floor, then crossed his arms.

_Well someone must be hungry..._

"Just give me a sec to get changed, and we can go downstairs to get food, ok?"

"Tree-KO!"

"OK, ok, never mind! Here, just have the rest of my sandwich, jeez."

He took my sandwich happily and ate it while I got washed. Not that getting washed did much. All I had to wear was a baggy red t-shirt, some old jeans, and an old pair of sneakers. I had given up on trying to tame my wavy, reddish-brown hair years ago, and decided to just put it into a braid.

_Aqua, you look like an orphan..._

_Well, ok, I guess you __**are**__ one, but that doesn't mean you have to look like one! If you ever get the money, the first thing you're doing is going out and buying new clothes..._

When I was as satisfied with my appearance as possible, I went down to the lobby to get some food (Emerald was _still_ hungry) and to look for Brendan, who had apparently left before dawn.

_Well he's some friend._

I decided it was time for me to leave, too, as I wanted to make it to Petalburg City before nightfall.

There were more Pokemon trainers on Route 102, but I kept my head down and managed to avoid them all. Emerald still wasn't listening to me, and refused to come out of his Pokeball. It was turning into a beautiful relationship... At least I didn't get whacked in the face today.

I sighed, I would have to have a talk with him sooner or later.

_The next morning..._

I left the Petalburg Pokemon Center at dawn so that I would, hopefully, avoid most of the trainers. I had overheard several talk about challenging the gym in the city. I would have loved to try for a badge, but with Emerald still ignoring me it would be hopeless.

I finally reached the entrance to Petalburg Woods. I paused outside the gate. This place brought back memories, bad ones, and I wasn't too eager to go back. I felt as if I was moving towards everything I had run away from, and it scared me. Still, if I wanted to be a Pokemon trainer I had to make it to Rustboro City.

_Just get this over with, Aqua._

The forest was dark. Ancient trees arched over the worn trail, casting long shadows on the ground. From beneath, the branches looked like a cage, closing in on me. I felt like I was in prison.

It was quiet. Few trainers ventured here, and the ones that did got out as quickly as they could. There was something about the forest, a sense of sadness or loneliness perhaps, that scared people away.

I left the trail. There was something I needed to see, deep in the heart of the forest.

As I walked on, the green of the forest turned to black, as healthy trees turned into charred skeletons. This was the part that had gotten burned in the forest fire five years ago. I paused and looked around. Nothing grew here, except dust and dirt. I felt my throat close, and tears threatened to spill from my eyes.

_This is all __**your**__ doing. How could you! Everything's dead! Do you know how many Pokémon probably died or lost their homes... You're a murderer!_

I couldn't take it anymore. I ran away from there, as fast as I could.

My body began to relax once I entered the living part of the forest again. I slowed to a walk, and found the trail I had been traveling on before.

It was time for me to have a chat with my treecko.

"Emerald, come on out!"

... "treecko."

"Emerald, I know you don't like me, but we need to talk."

"Tree..."

"Is there anything I can do to gain your trust? I want to be a good trainer to you, but I can't if you refuse to listen to me."

"ko!"

"I know I need to get better at battling, but I'm trying to improve. Is that it?"

"ko-ko!"

"Do you want me to feed you more?"

"ko..."

"Are you lonely, because I can catch another pokemon with your help. Would you like that?"

"Treecko!"

"Is there anything I can do?"

"... "

"Listen, if you're never going to like me, then I'm just going to have to release you or give you back to Professor Birch.

"Nuz-leaf!"

_You've got to be kidding me..._

"Treecko! Treecko-Tree!"

Emerald dashed off, disappearing into the trees.

"Hey! Wait for me!

I ran after him. If he got lost in these woods, we would never find each other. It was bad enough I had no idea where he went.

"Grrrrr!"

"Tree!"

"Nuz!"

_Oh no, absolutely not. Not the nuzleaf again! Seriously life, why do you hate me so much!_

I followed the growling to a clearing, where I found Emerald and an injured poochyena being surrounded by the gang of nuzleaf from before.

* * *

ok, I know the shapter is unfinished, but again my mom's banning me from logging on. I'll tell what happens in the rest of the chapter below. don't read if you don't want to. I WILL publish the rest in a few years. I promise

sorry steven never appeared... he was supposed to next chapter...

* * *

OK, so basically its the same gang of rival nuzleaf as before, and they're hurting a wild baby poochyena. Emerald & Aqua both want to help. He actually listens to her in the battle & they get the injured poochyena. back at the pokemon center, they both end up ok, and the poochyena decides to travel with Aqua. Aqua names the poochyena Enna (original isn't it...)


End file.
